BKMI vs EVIM

BKMIBBNY Mellon Municipal Intermediate ETF

EVIMAEaton Vance Intermediate Municipal Income ETF

In short

BKMI A muni strategy with roots in 1987, now in ETF form: roughly 500 federally tax-exempt bonds with duration parked between three and eight years. The intermediate lane, priced a step above the muni median.

EVIM Active muni management at index-fund pricing. Eaton Vance charges 0.11% for a federally tax-exempt, intermediate-maturity bond portfolio built by bond pickers instead of copied from a benchmark.

Stated mandate

BKMI The ETF seeks to maximize current income exempt from federal income tax while preserving capital. It normally invests at least 80% of its assets in federally tax-exempt municipal bonds, with portfolio effective duration generally between three and eight years.

EVIM The fund seeks income through a diversified portfolio of debt securities whose interest is exempt from regular federal income tax, with at least 80% of assets committed to that municipal-bond strategy.

Why people hold it

• BKMI The mandate is specific: at least 80% in federally tax-exempt munis, effective duration generally three to eight years. No long-bond surprises hiding inside.
• Income is built to come out exempt from federal income tax, with preserving capital named right alongside it in the objective.
• Roughly 500 bonds inside a multi-billion-dollar portfolio, so no single issuer carries the fund.
• The strategy's track record starts in 1987, which is a lot of rate cycles before muni ETFs were even a thing.

• EVIM Charges 0.11% a year against a roughly 0.30% muni-ETF median. That is a hands-on bond desk priced in index-fund territory.
• At least 80% of assets go to munis whose interest is exempt from regular federal income tax, with room for up to 20% in taxable munis and Treasuries.aaii.com
• Income lands monthly, and the core of it escapes regular federal income tax.
• Diversified core muni exposure across sectors, states and credit tiers, and one of the stronger implementations in a crowded tax-exempt bond field.eatonvance.com

Worth knowing

• BKMI At 0.35% a year it prices above the muni cohort median of 0.30%, and well above index heavyweights VTEB and SCMB at 0.03%.
• Payouts have arrived on an irregular schedule rather than the fixed monthly rhythm many muni funds keep.
• Trading is moderate rather than heavy, so the spread can be a bigger slice of a round trip than with the category's most-traded muni funds.

• EVIM Index rivals cost less: VTEB and SCMB at 0.03%, MUB at 0.05%. The gap is what the active team costs.
• Trades lighter than the household-name index munis, so spreads can widen and limit orders matter more.
• Launched in 2023, so the record is short, and results trace back to the manager's bond selection rather than a published index.aaii.com

Full BKMI profile⁠

Full EVIM profile⁠